New diamond nanothreads could be the key material for building a space elevator

Researchers have created the first diamond nanothreads — which are basically like carbon nanotubes, but stronger and stiffer. Mathematically, these diamond nanothreads are possibly the strongest and stiffest material that can be constructed in the known universe. As interest in space elevators and other international megaprojects swell, these diamond nanothreads might be exactly what we need to get crazy seemingly impossible constructions off the whiteboard and into reality. As you may know, diamond is one of the hardest materials in the known universe. What you might not know is that diamond is very closely related to graphene and carbon nanotubes — two materials that have their own set of remarkable properties.

New diamond nanothreads could be the key material for building a space elevator



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The possibility of being able to construct a Space elevator and the materials involved in said construction has always held my attention as it has many others i imagine, so i thought this article may also interest some of my fellow ATS members.

Diamonds on the soles of her shoes hey? Never wear out.....
Maybe a ropey hunk big enough to hold in yer hand and sharpen your favourite Buck knife on.....
Never mind a space elevator that really works....
A billion applications there my friend....

a reply to: stirling

"A billion applications there my friend...."

And then some I imagine. The possibilities are endless!

New diamond nanothreads could be the key material for building a space elevator

'Space Elevator', an orbiting transport into space system.

OTIS for short.

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Maybe we're not the first to build a space elevator on Earth?

The description of Jacob's ladder appears in Genesis 28:10-19:

Jacob left Beersheba, and went toward Haran. He came to the place and stayed there that night, because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones of the place, he put it under his head and lay down in that place to sleep. And he dreamed, and behold, there was a ladder set up on the Earth, and the top of it reached to heaven; and behold, the angels of God were ascending and descending on it! ... Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, "Surely the Lord is in this place; and I did not know it." And he was afraid, and said, "This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven."

pic: (Jacob's Dream by William Blake)

Wikipedia: Jacob's Ladder

Just a slightly relevant aside based on my uncontrollable imagination. Carry on.
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a reply to: Psynic

So many of us grew up seeing Otis on escalators and elevators and perhaps our grandchildren will see the same thing on their ride to space. History repeats I guess.

a reply to: audenine

In the same way that Jack and the Beanstalk is, I guess.

Dont we already have a space elevator? called Worm holes?

a reply to: Lil Drummerboy

"Dont we already have a space elevator?"

I think we may notice said structure considering the scale of such a thing. If we did have one i imagine it would probably be located in an equatorial region, pretty hard to hide such a thing.

"called Worm holes?"

We haven't even come close to fully understanding the theoretical mathematics regarding the generation of wormholes(Einstein–Rosen bridge) never mind the materials or energy requirements involved in producing such a thing, maybe in a 100 years or so.

originally posted by: andy06shake

I think we may notice said structure considering the scale of such a thing. If we did have one i imagine it would probably be located in an equatorial region, pretty hard to hide such a thing.

Wouldn't it be easy to hide something that is only a few molecules thick? It could be tethered to the bottom of the ocean - like, say, in the Bermuda Triangle - and by the time it broke water would be so thin we wouldn't see it. However, it may be highly radioactive and so planes and ships getting close to it may experience disturbances in compass or radar readings or even temporal fluctations. Wait...

a reply to: audenine

"Wouldn't it be easy to hide something that is only a few molecules thick? It could be tethered to the bottom of the ocean - like, say, in the Bermuda Triangle - and by the time it broke water would be so thin we wouldn't see it."

The travel/cargo pods moving up and down would be rather visible. As would any station or structure connected in low Earth orbit. And i imagine we would need to build the cable slightly thicker than a few molecules simply due to the practicalities of moving up and down the cable.

"However, it may be highly radioactive and so planes and ships getting close to it may experience disturbances in compass or radar readings or even temporal fluctations. Wait..."

Why would "it" be highly radioactive, and what's "It" if you don't mind me asking?

a reply to: stirling

My immediate thought was "mono-molecular blades" ... should beat those ceramic blades for sharpness!

The only problem will be that when I cut my Thanksgiving turkey, I won't know when I got to the bone!

a reply to: andy06shake

Since I'm wildly speculating, let's say "it" is the tether and its cloaked cargo is radioactive for reasons best explained by a wildly speculating physicist. I have read elsewhere that it will be possible to make diamond nanotubing that we can't even see because it is so thin. I'm just pointing out that if we're now starting to realize space elevators, cloaking technology and harnessing wave energy to power the actual lifts can't be far behind. And if that is possible in the near future, who is to say that it hasn't already been done in the ancient past? I further speculate that cats will soon take over the world, there is no gold at Fort Knox, and time travelers ate my homework.

a reply to: audenine

Then since we are now wildly speculating, maybe it's tethered to the Black Knight satellite that has allegedly been doing the rounds since before the space race?

Coming back to the realms of reality through I really think its highly improbable that we could have a working space elevator and operate said device without drawing attention. Plus i imagine any such project would have to be the work of many nations rather than one, given the scale of such a thing, kind of hard to keep secret.

And why would you want to keep the thing secret given the fact that any such device would usher in a new age for humanity? Or at least make colonisation of the Moon and Mars a viable project.

en.wikipedia.org...

a reply to: andy06shake

Cant wait for diamond tooth floss.